The use of abdominal free fat for volumetric augmentation and primary dural closure in supratentorial skull base surgery: managing the stigma of a temporal defect.

The most prominent stigma of supratentorial skull base surgery is the defect caused by wasting of the temporalis muscle by denervation, devascularization, or rotation of the muscle. Any of the above may lead to a unilateral temporal deformity informally referred to patients as "the divot in my head." Abdominal free fat grafting has been used by surgeons for years to close posterior fossa defects with excellent results. We present our experience using abdominal free fat grafts to improve cosmetic results and to prevent cerebrospinal fluid leaks in supratentorial skull base surgery. The basic technique and its benefits are described.

Neurosurgical mortality rates: what variables affect mortality within a single institution and within a national database?

OBJECT: Mortality rate is a common outcome measure used by patients, families, physicians, insurers, and health care policy makers to evaluate and measure the quality of health care. The mortality index is a heavily used metric to measure survival, and is a key indicator in hospital report cards and national rankings. The significance of this metric is belied by the literature, which fails to accurately detail the overall mortality rate within the neurosurgical population. Given that there is no gold standard that can be used as a baseline, it is difficult to make durable interinstitutional comparisons concerning performance. In Part I of this paper, the authors examined an academic neurosurgical program's mortality rate and the effect of certain variables on this rate. In Part II, they assumed a broader perspective, examining a group of institutions, the University HealthSystem Consortium (UHC) Clinical Database/Resource Manager, and identifying factors that may be responsible for variability in the mortality index between hospitals. METHODS: Over a 36-month period, the authors' neurosurgical service performed 3650 procedures. Monthly "mortality and morbidity" conference logs were reviewed to collect information on the number of deaths. Deaths were classified according to elective or nonelective admission status. Additionally, the authors reviewed the UHC Clinical Database/Resource Manager for information regarding mortality rates in various other neurosurgical programs. These data reflected a 12-month period. Comparisons of hospital mortality indices were based on the percentage of transferred patients (both emergency department [ED] and inpatient), whether a hospital was a designated Level 1 trauma center, whether a hospital was designated a certified stroke center, and also based on the number of Medicaid patients treated. RESULTS: Sixty-two patients met the criteria to be considered neurosurgery-related deaths at the authors' institution (1.7% of all cases): 9 elective admissions (15%), 3 nonelective direct admissions (5%), 24 transfer patients (39%), and 26 ED admissions (42%). Causes of death included trauma (40%), stroke (33%), tumor (14%), spinal disease (8%), and infection (6%). Evaluation of the UHC data revealed that a mortality index of >or= 1.00 was seen in the following hospital types: trauma centers, hospitals with 11-20% Medicaid patients, and those with > 50,000 ED admissions. A nonstatistically significant trend toward increasing mortality rates was seen in hospitals with a lower percentage of elective neurosurgical cases, in Level 1 trauma centers, and in hospitals that were not certified stroke centers. Significance was seen in comparisons of hospitals with the highest and lowest mortality index quartiles in the following groups: trauma centers, hospitals with > 10% Medicaid patients, and hospitals with a high number of ED visits. CONCLUSIONS: Many variables appear to impact the mortality rate within the neurosurgical population. The authors' observations have illuminated some of the reasons why: the data are elusive, documentation is variable, and the modes of statistical analysis are questionable. The first step in addressing this issue is to identify that there is a problem. The authors believe that this study has done so. Presently there is no definitive or reliable source for rating the quality of overall neurosurgical care, nor is there a good and complete source for understanding the quality of neurosurgical care in the US. It is important to view these results as the initial steps to a better understanding of patient outcomes, their measures, and their impact on neurosurgical practice.

Anomalous medial origin of the anterior choroidal artery with associated aneurysm.

Injury to the anterior choroidal artery (AchA) can be devastating owing to the importance of the territory it supplies. The AchA is a known site of aneurysm formation, and is often exposed during various surgical and endovascular procedures. We report a patient with an aneurysm at the origin of the AchA, and an anomalous medial take off of the artery from the internal carotid artery, then a sharp lateral turn followed by a normal course toward the choroidal fissure, unreported to date to our knowledge. The aneurysm was treated successfully by endovascular therapy. The typical anatomy of the AchA, and reported variations in its origin are discussed. Thorough knowledge of the normal cerebrovascular anatomy and attention to variations play an important role in the successful management of patients with neurological vascular conditions.

Laparoscopic-assisted lumboperitoneal shunt placement for idiopathic intracranial hypertension.

Lumboperitoneal (LP) shunting is considered an effective method of cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) diversion in patients with idiopathic intracranial hypertension (IIH). Confirmation of flow out of the distal portion of the catheter once in its final position can be difficult, especially in obese individuals. A new technique to improve placement of the peritoneal catheter involves laparoscopic catheter insertion. We performed laparoscopic-assisted LP shunt placement for IIH on four patients. Improvement in preoperative IIH symptomatology was noted in all patients. No laparoscopic-procedure-related complications were noted. No problems were noted in shunt functioning and none of the shunts have required revision surgery at last follow-up. LP shunt related complications were noted in two of the four patients. Complications included bilateral lower extremity lumbar radiculopathy in one patient that resolved with a short course of gabapentin, spinal headache in one patient that resolved with bed rest and fluids, and development of a small intracranial subdural hygroma without mass effect in one patient that is asymptomatic and being followed without clinical consequence. Laparoscopic insertion of the abdominal catheter is safe and effective and does not appear to independently cause an increased risk of complications.